Definition

1. Noun:
   • The basic monetary unit of the United States, Canada, Australia, and other countries: A standard unit of currency, typically subdivided into 100 cents.
   • A coin or banknote representing this unit: A physical representation of the monetary value of one dollar.
   • A symbol of wealth, commercialism, or materialism: Used metaphorically to represent financial power or greed.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The basic monetary unit in many countries; equal to 100 cents.
  • He worships the almighty dollar. (Here, 'dollar' symbolizes wealth and materialism.)
  • A piece of paper money worth one dollar.
  • The dollar coin has never been popular in the United States.

Advanced Usage

• "The almighty dollar": A phrase used, often critically, to describe the power of money and materialism.
  • The film critiques a society obsessed with the almighty dollar.
• "Dollar diplomacy": A foreign policy that seeks to achieve a government's aims through the economic power of its country's financial resources and corporations.
  • Historians debate the effectiveness of early 20th-century dollar diplomacy.
• "Dollar area": A group of countries that peg their currencies to the U.S. dollar or use it as a primary reserve currency.
  • Trade within the dollar area simplifies currency exchange.

Variants and Related Words

• Dollarization (n): The process by which a country adopts the U.S. dollar as its official currency.
  • The country's dollarization helped stabilize its economy.
• Dollar sign (n): The symbol '$' used to represent a dollar.
  • The dollar sign is placed before the amount.

Synonyms

• Buck (n, informal): A casual term for one U.S. dollar.
  • This coffee cost me five bucks.
• Greenback (n, informal): Refers specifically to a U.S. dollar banknote.
  • He paid with a few crumpled greenbacks.

Related Phrases

• To feel like a million dollars: To feel extremely good or healthy.
  • After a good night's sleep, I feel like a million dollars.
• To bet one's bottom dollar: To be absolutely certain about something.
  • I'd bet my bottom dollar that she'll win the election.

Noun

1. a symbol of commercialism or greed
   • he worships the almighty dollar
   • the dollar sign means little to him
2. a United States coin worth one dollar
   • the dollar coin has never been popular in the United States
3. a piece of paper money worth one dollar
4. the basic monetary unit in many countries; equal to 100 cents